Australian shares rose on Tuesday, led by gains in financial and healthcare stocks, as an absence of a further escalation in U.S.-Iran tensions revived investor appetite for riskier assets.
The S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> closed up 1.4%, or 90.70 points, to 6,826.40, after ending flat on Monday.
"In the instant gratification world we live in, a lack of immediate action by Iran has, in fact, seen the haven momentum wane overnight," Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst for Asia Pacific at OANDA, said in a note to clients.
Longtime foes Tehran and Washington have been in a war of words since Friday, when Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani was killed in a U.S. drone strike, prompting fears of a broader regional conflict.
The financials sub-index <.AXFJ> gained 1.5% to a more than two-week closing high, with the "Big Four" Australian banks jumping between 1.2% and 1.8%.
Third largest lender National Australia Bank Ltd <NAB.AX> added 1.4%, while Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd <ANZ.AX> rose 1.3%.
CSL Ltd <CSL.AX> ended up 2.4% as Morgan Stanley said the drugmaker has the "most positive business momentum" in the healthcare sector <.AXHJ> for the year.
Buy-now-pay-later firm Sezzle Inc <SZL.AX> surged 41.9%, after the U.S.-based firm appeared upbeat on expectations of a successful outcome for its lending licence application in California.
Bucking the trend, the gold index <.AXGD> retreated 2.1% as a rest in Middle East tensions dented bullion prices and safe-haven appeal. [GOL/]
Gold miner Resolute Mining Ltd <RSG.AX> fell 3.9% and was the worst performer on the ASX benchmark, while Regis Resources <RRL.AX> lost 3.6%.
Property manager Ingenia Communities Group <INA.AX> declined 3.8% after it flagged lower fiscal 2020 earnings growth due to the impact of the Australian bushfires on tourism.
In neighbouring New Zealand, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index <.NZ50> ended little changed at 11,627.32.
Utilities firm Meridian Energy Ltd <MEL.NZ> gained 3%, while Auckland International Airport Ltd <AIA.NZ> lost 1.5%.
(Reporting by Niyati Shetty in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)
